Reach Out to the Truth
by Bvv31389
Summary: Persona 4/Glee crossover. Quinn clenched her jaw and her fists. She was the modern day Sherlock Freaking Holmes and some impostor who had stolen her face was not going to reduce her to a whimpering mess with her weird mind games.
1. Edge of Madness

**A/N** : A big thank you to cressdreiser, who gave me the idea for this, made a manip of Quinn wearing Naoto's hat for inspiration (link in my profile), and agreed to be my brain-buddy and beta reader. This is going to be a two-parter, but I'm not sure when the next part will be up. First part is an angstfest of epic proportions, but the second part should be fluffier.

* * *

Quinn didn't know where she was, how she got there, or (and she was angriest at herself for that) who kidnapped her. She remembered opening her apartment's door, and then a chloroform-smelling cloth being pressed against her mouth and nose, and the next time she opened her eyes she was in this room.

The slight feeling of satisfaction she had felt at the relative success of her plan to set herself up for abduction to expose the serial murderer had dissipated after she had taken a look around. She was in a large room with high, stained glass windows, rows of pews, pillars, and what looked like an altar at the front of the room. It reminded her all too much of a church, and it made uneasiness bloom in the pit of her stomach. She hadn't been to church in years.

A strange, thick fog was drifting around the room, impairing her vision and making her somewhat dizzy if she breathed in too deep. There was only one door that seemed to be locked from the outside. Even Quinn's best lock-picking skills were useless. She was effectively trapped inside, and her uneasiness grew. This was an unexpected setback, and she was suddenly grateful for the comforting weight of the Derringer pistol in her ankle holster. It had taken great pains for her to legally own one in Ohio despite her age, but her line of work and the perilous situations it put her in had been a strong enough argument to sway a judge. Twelve hours of training and a few tests later she was armed.

She turned back around and swept her eyes around the room once more. She had spent enough time training her observational skills that she knew she had not missed anything, but there was little else to do. She was fairly convinced that the group of teenagers she suspected were involved in this affair would find her eventually, probably sweeping in dramatically like heroes on a rescue mission. They were just kids, but if her conclusions were accurate (and they usually were) they had been the ones to save all the other victims. Regardless of any romantic illusions they had of themselves, she could give them that.

She took a few steps towards the front of the room, the sounds of her footsteps reverberating against the walls and ceiling seeming strangely enhanced by the sheer silence of the place, and stopped cold. A chill had suddenly gone down her spine, and a bizarre sensation had swept over her – like something had been ripped from inside her and left her breathless and strangely light-headed.

She shook her head and blinked hard to rid her vision of the black spots. Whatever just happened had made her feel warm and her limbs feel slightly tingly. She unbuttoned her vest and loosened her tie, taking deep breaths to try to get herself back under control. Just as she started thinking that the oppressive silence and the strange fog were getting to her, a voice coming from behind her made her whirl around in shock.

"Well, look at you. Aren't you just handsome?"

A girl about her age stood there, dressed in a light summer dress with a pale cardigan and ballet flats. Her blonde hair was held back by a pretty headband and her eyes were a gleaming, cruel yellow and she had Quinn's face and _fuck_, Quinn couldn't breathe.

"What's the matter? Forgot what you used to look like? Well, I guess I'm a bit more grown-up than you were the last time you wore a dress, hm?" The doppelganger's voice was light and smooth, its register higher than Quinn had let herself use in a long while. It felt like a punch to her stomach and she instinctively took a step back.

"What the hell? Who are you? Are you the one who kidnapped me?" Quinn's voice was shaking a little and the person wearing her face seemed to pick up on it. Her lips – Quinn noticed she was wearing lipstick, a shade pale enough to make it seem like her lips were just naturally that pink but make-up nonetheless, and she remembered being ten and spending the night at Mercedes' house, giggling as they secretly experimented different ways to apply lipstick with the bright red one she'd swiped from her mom's purse – curled up in a smirk and she practically purred the next words.

"I am not. Can you really not tell who I am? I think you already know." With a speed that made Quinn's right hand reflexively jump to her holster where her handgun was, Not-Quinn found her way to a dais to the left of the altar at the front of the room and threw her arms out. "Do you remember when you used to sing for your church's choir? Your dad would watch you with a proud smile, and when the service was over he would introduce you to all his important friends, warmth in his voice as he said your name." Not-Quinn raised her hands palms-up towards the ceiling and spun around a few times, an ecstatic smile on her face and her dress billowing around her thighs. "Of course you remember. It felt so good to be daddy's little girl."

Of course she remembered. She remembered so many things, good and bad. His proud smile, the warmth in his voice, the times he took her to baseball games, his strong arms carrying her to her room after she'd fallen asleep on the couch watching TV, his adamant refusal to get a dog, the way he spontaneously danced with her mom in the kitchen when their song came on the radio, the nights he came home from work so late she didn't even see him, his laughter, and she remembered his cold, unforgiving eyes on that awful day.

_Who are you? I don't recognize you at all._

As if reading her thoughts, Not-Quinn threw her head back and let delighted laughter spill from her lips. Quinn clenched her jaw and her fists. She was the modern day Sherlock Fucking Holmes and some impostor who had stolen her face was not going to reduce her to a whimpering mess with her weird mind games.

Just as she opened her mouth to tell her doppelganger she was wasting her time trying to play tricks on her, she suddenly found herself inches away from her own face, yellow eyes peering up at the few strands of hair escaping Quinn's blue hat. Startled, she stumbled back a few steps and crashed into a pew, falling down onto it. She sat up as Not-Quinn started talking again.

"You know wearing that blue thing all the time isn't good for your hair, right? I know you're trying to pass off as something you're not, but that's kind of a stupid way to do it. Then again," her lips curled up again in that cruel smile, the barest hint of straight white teeth visible, and her silky-smooth voice seemed to caress the next words. "I do know why you don't want to cut your hair, and why you take such good care of it."

And as she actually _danced_ away, Not-Quinn delicately ran her fingers through the long locks of hair elegantly falling around her shoulders, humming an achingly familiar tune. Quinn felt her insides twist as a rush of memories flooded her brain. Her mom brushing her hair before she left for school, softly singing the very song her double was humming. Her mom running her fingers through her hair while Quinn dozed with her head in her mom's lap. Exchanging haircare tips with her mom on lazy afternoons, mint tea and chocolate chip cookies on the coffee table. Her mom scolding her for cutting locks of her own hair when she was five. Her mom affectionately running a hand down Quinn's hair when her church friends complimented it. Her mom sitting stonily in an armchair while her husband kicked her daughter out and Quinn was begging her to _say something_.

In a surge of anger, Quinn jumped out of the pew she was still sitting in and rushed towards that _thing_ who talked too much, who knew too much, and backed her up against the nearest pillar, hands coming up to rest on either side of Not-Quinn's face, the cold stone of the pillar rough against her palms.

"Stop it! I don't know who you are or what you're trying to do, but this has gone on long enough. How do you know all of this?"

Just as the impostor opened her mouth to answer, the door burst open and the group of teenagers Quinn had forgotten were comig, the ones she suspected of being involved in her investigation, ran in. She jumped back from Not-Quinn, somehow ashamed to have been seen so close to her, and felt her stomach drop. A bunch of strangers were seeing her look-alike _wearing a dress_.

Her doppelganger recovered from her surprise faster. "There you are! I was wondering what took you so long." She twirled once, showing off for the new arrivals. "How do you like my look?"

Confusion spread across the group's features, except for the blonde cheerleader, who grinned at Not-Quinn and answered, "you look really pretty."

The big, mohawked guy spoke up. "... Why is the guy's shadow dressed like a girl?"

"I don't know," piped up the small, flamboyantly dressed boy next to him, "but that hair is fabulous."

Not-Quinn grinned like the Cheshire cat, and abruptly turned back to Quinn. "Do you remember when you first started working on cases like this? You were ten, weren't you? Your father's family has a long tradition of providing the country with some of its finest detectives, and you had already shown signs of a prodigious mind. You snuck in your father's study one night and looked through the file of the case he was working on. You solved it all by yourself, and from then on you became an unofficial but very well-known consultant. Your name spread across the country, and in every police station everyone knew how brilliant you were, but no one had ever seen you." Her doppelganger threw her head back and took a deep breath, chest rising and falling, elation written on every line of her face. "For the next two years, you felt on top of the world."

Suddenly, Not-Quinn's face fell, and she cocked her head as she looked at Quinn. "And then your father caught you sharing your first kiss with your friend Tina in your room, and everything went to hell. You stood in the living room, begging your mom to help you as your father kicked you out of the only home you'd ever known, because no child of his was going to be _like that_."

"I don't get it. His dad kicked him out because he kissed a girl?" whispered the tallest teenager. Most of them still looked confused, but the leader and the tiny singer looked from Quinn to her doppelganger, eyes lingering on her summer dress and long hair, and comprehension dawned on their features. Quinn felt dread freeze her insides while the hot flush of shame simultaneously swept over her skin. _They knew_.

Not-Quinn ignored them and kept talking. "Your friend Mercedes and her family took you in, but it wasn't the same. So you decided to show your parents what they were rejecting. You come from a family of detectives, so you would become the best private detective that has ever lived! But there was a flaw in that plan. The detective world isn't very welcoming to... " She slowly dragged her gaze down Quinn's form. "... people like you. So you were fortunate that everyone had heard of your name, but never seen you. You took advantage of that, and changed your image. You modeled yourself after the literary heroes of your childhood. You would put Hercule Poirot and Sherlock Holmes to shame! And look at you now. I guess you succeeded."

"I still don't understand. What is she talking about?" The shorter cheerleader asked, arms crossed over her chest. Quinn's double laughed, girlish giggles echoing in the cavernous room, and stalked towards Quinn. "Oh, Quinnie, isn't it adorable how slow they are?" She slinked behind Quinn, wrapping her arms around her original's waist and pressing herself up against her back. Quinn was so light-headed she felt as if her head was surrounded by cotton, about to detach from her shoulders and fly away, and she fought to stay conscious. "Quinnie, Quinnie, Quinnie. Quinn Fabray. What a wonderful name." She leaned her chin on Quinn's shoulder and Quinn felt Not-Quinn's cheek move against her neck as she smiled. She thought she might throw up. "Isn't it convenient? It's so... gender neutral."

And with a laugh and a flourish, she grabbed Quinn's hat and tore it off her head. Quinn felt her long, soft hair fall around her shoulders in light waves, felt the air rush over her uncovered head, felt her doppelganger step away, heard the gasps from the group of teens, saw their eyes widen, and felt her heart stop. They knew. They knew _everything_.

"But it doesn't change anything, Quinnie!" She heard her doppelganger's voice over the roar of her blood rushing to her head. "Just because you wear men's clothes won't change the fact that you're a scared little girl who wants her mommy and daddy back. I would know." She linked her hands behind her back and leaned forward a little, yellow eyes gleaming. "After all, I _am_ you."

It was too much. Quinn's hands found her temples as she sank to her knees, an avalanche of thoughts assailing her mind.

"NO!"

_This hurts so much why does it hurts so much I only kissed her once I'll show them I can be what they want they'll have to talk to me again I miss them so much no one will take me seriously if I'm a girl I'm better than all of them I'll show them I'll show them all I can do this I can't this hurts so much mommy daddy why don't you love me._

"YOU'RE NOT ME!"

And everything went black.


	2. Your Affection

**A/N** : All right, here is the second and final chapter of this little crossover. Thanks again to cressdreiser for the beta work!

* * *

It had been weird, at first. They had all been rushing through the huge cathedral that Quinn's subconscious had created, fueled by fear for the annoying teen detective and a strange mix of anger and admiration at the stupid, dangerous, and incredibly clever stunt he had pulled. Two days after the kidnapping, they had finally reached him. Or, well, _her_, as they learned from the elegantly feminine, confident doppelganger of who Rachel had come to see as a charming, gentlemanly (if smug) young man. She had revealed Quinn's biggest secret at the end of a heartbreaking monologue, dramatically sweeping the peculiar hat off of Quinn's head.

Rachel's heart had dropped in sympathy as she watched blonde locks fall around Quinn's shoulders, watched her face contort in a rush of horror, shame, fear, anger and pain. Quinn's appearance was more disheveled than Rachel had ever seen it before; her vest was unbuttoned, her tie loose and shirt untucked and ruffled. The loss of her hat seemed to add to the picture of helplessness she painted. Rachel remembered the feeling of someone wearing your face spilling out your deepest secrets to a bunch of strangers and knew even before Quinn opened her mouth what she was going to say next.

After they had defeated her shadow and Quinn had accepted that part of herself, it had taken some getting used to. She had stopped using her hat to hide her long hair and had taken to letting the silky strands fall elegantly from the blue cap. It had taken the rest of the team a few days to stop using masculine pronouns when talking about her, but eventually everything had fallen into place and Quinn was now a fully-fledged member of their little gang.

Less than a week after Quinn had recovered from her ordeal, Mike had called them all to enter the TV and go exploring the corners of the cathedral they had missed in their hurry the first time. He'd taken Finn, Brittany and Santana with him and told the others to stay as back-up in case something happened.

This was how they came to be here, thought Rachel as she stood at the entrance to the cathedral, her persona Elphaba hovering over her allowing her to communicate with her teammates. She watched Quinn and Puck toss a tennis ball back and forth while she told Brittany absently that no, when she said that those shadows were ice-repellent, it didn't mean they were weak to ice.

"This wouldn't have happened if he'd picked me instead," huffed Kurt from his spot next to her, where he was sitting and filing his nails. "And my persona's ice spells are the best. You know Glinda's magic is stronger."

"Maybe so," agreed Rachel. "But you know Santana wouldn't have gone in without Brittany, and they needed Satan's healing and fire spells."

"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, without Puck she's their best bruiser. Finn can barely avoid dropping his daggers on his own feet. And if Puck wasn't here..." a sly grin spread over his face. "I couldn't flirt with him until he gets flustered. See you later, sweet pea."

Rachel watched him saunter over to the other members of their team before being distracted by a group of shadows ambushing their friends inside the cathedral. She opened her eyes once the battle was over, after reminding Finn that he was still poisoned, and found Quinn self-consciously standing a few steps away from her, hands in her pockets. Even though the other girl had stopped trying to hide her gender and had literally let her hair down, she hadn't stopped wearing men's clothes, claiming she didn't feel comfortable with women's clothes anymore. She was currently wearing sensible black slacks, a dark blue button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows and a black, sleeveless vest. A silver watch gleamed on her left wrist and her signature blue hat sat atop her head. Rachel had to admit she looked rather... _dashing_.

"Hi! Come to keep me company?" She asked Quinn with an easy grin, hoping to make her comfortable.

Quinn answered with a bashful smile, "If you don't mind? Kurt stole Puck away." She scuffed the toe of her shoe into the ground and Rachel empathically _did not_ swoon.

"Why would I mind? Here." Rachel sat down on the ground, her back against the cathedral's stone wall, and patted the ground next to her. "Sit. Let's talk. We haven't really had a chance to."

Quinn shot her a grateful smile, and gracefully sat down next to her, bringing her left knee up and resting her forearm on it. "You'll have to forgive me if I suddenly space out and start yelling ord– I mean, advice to our friends inside. There's no telling when they'll get into a fight." Rachel told her as Quinn sat down.

"Naturally. Is talking to me going to distract you? I wouldn't want to be a bother."

Rachel chuckled before answering. "You won't, don't worry. If anything happens, she'll warn me." She pointed to her persona with a smile.

Quinn nodded with a glance at Elphaba before smirking suddenly. "So... do you often lie to detectives investigating murder cases? I don't recall you mentioning anything about personas and other worlds when I asked you if you remembered anything after your abduction."

Rachel blinked before raising an eyebrow. "Would you really have believed me? Be honest."

Quinn chuckled before answering, a high and melodious sound, and Rachel wondered how they could possibly have ever believed she was a man. "No, I definitely wouldn't have. I'm pretty sure I would have thought the pressure of showbiz had driven you over the edge."

Rachel's smile – she hadn't realized that the sound of Quinn's laughter had made her smile – fell off her face at Quinn's last words. She spoke quietly. "Well, it... it kind of did." Quinn's eyes snapped to her face and Rachel smiled tightly. "There's a reason one of the most successful pop singers in the country unexpectedly took a break. You're not the only one who had to face her shadow. Having the literal personnification of everything you hate about yourself throw some hard truths in your face probably counts as being driven over the edge, doesn't it?"

Rachel closed her eyes as she remembered an almost naked version of herself calling her an attention whore, telling her that no one in her legion of fans actually cared about the real her, and how could they when she herself wasn't even sure who she was when her publicists stopped forcing her into a box? No one could want to be friends with her. She'd be alone forever.

Quinn's voice broke into her thoughts. "I'm sorry." She was biting her lip and a look of sympathy had settled on her features. "I shouldn't have said that. It was insensitive of me."

The mood had quickly turned somber and Rachel cursed her big mouth. "Hey, no, don't worry about it. It was a good thing, in the long run. Especially because I know now that some of my fears were unfounded." She smiled at Quinn as the other girl quirked an eyebrow. "I have friends now. People who genuinely like me for me."

Understanding shone in Quinn's eyes and she looked to Kurt, who was talking to a heavily blushing Puck. A half-smile stretched her lips. "And I keep making new ones." Rachel nudged Quinn's shoulder with her own, causing Quinn to blush and tug her hat lower over her eyes, smile turning bashful. It was kind of adorable and Rachel felt warmth spread in her chest.

"Friendship _is_ a very nice feeling, isn't it? I had almost forgotten." Quinn had a wistful smile on her face as she spoke, and Rachel couldn't help her curiosity.

"Don't you already have friends? Your shadow" Quinn winced and Rachel cursed her lack of tact but kept going, "said that one of your friends took you in after... well, um–"

"Yes. Mercedes." Quinn cut her off, obviously not ready to hear someone else talk about her father kicking her out. "We're still friends. Honestly she's like family to me. But the more involved in my work I became, the more I needed to move to investigate my cases. We haven't exactly drifted apart, but... it's not the same. We mostly talk through e-mails and text messages, and we don't actually _see_ each other very often."

Rachel bit her lip. "And... and the other girl? The one you–" she cut herself off, unsure if Quinn was willing to talk about _that_ just yet.

"Tina." Quinn hesitated before answering. "I... I haven't seen her since that day. I guess my d– my father scared her."

"I see." Said Rachel quietly. Her next words came out in a rush. "I'm sorry, I really shouldn't be asking you this. It's none of my business, and you probably don't want to talk about it, at least not with someone you just met."

"It's all right." A corner of Quinn's mouth turned up in a weak smile. "You already know most of it, really. Well, the worst part, anyway."

Rachel nodded and a comfortable silence settled over them, which was quickly broken when the group inside Quinn's cathedral was ambushed by an abnormally large group of shadows. Rachel closed her eyes and let Elphaba transport part of her consciousness over to their friends. The battle was a tough one and when she opened her eyes she saw that Kurt and Puck had joined her and Quinn. All three sported nervous expressions and Rachel realized that in her worry she had been louder than she thought when providing her usual commentary.

"Brittany's hurt." She said curtly, rising to her feet and turning towards the entrance. "She'll be fine, but it's still rather bad. They're coming back right now."

They waited a few tense moments until the light of a Goho-M shone just in front of the cathedral's door and the rest of their friends appeared. Santana's arm was around Brittany's waist and the taller girl was leaning heavily into her, her face buried in Santana's neck. Finn was hovering around them, face pale and scared. Blood was running down one of Brittany's leg.

"Brittany I'm so sorry, I swear I didn't see it coming, please let me help–"

"You've helped enough, Jolly Finn Giant." Snapped Santana. "If you had been aware of your surroundings to start with, she wouldn't have had to push you out of the way. Back off before I–" She was cut off as Brittany whimpered into her neck, what was visible of her face pale and drawn in pain. Santana's whole demeanor changed in a second and she addressed Brittany in a soft voice. "Hey, B, it's all right. We'll get you fixed in no time." And with a last glare at Finn, she tightened her arm around Brittany's waist and led the group out of the TV world.

* * *

A few weeks later, Rachel found herself standing in front of Quinn's apartment door, nervous for no apparent reason. Their group had been hanging out a lot the past few weeks and Rachel and Quinn somehow always ended up spending time together. Rachel found herself really enjoying the other girl's company and they had been growing steadily closer, so why was she having such a hard time convincing herself to knock on Quinn's door?

She shook herself and raised her fist, but faltered halfway through the motion. _Oh, come on, this is ridiculous._ She took a deep breath and tried again, this time firmly knocking on the door. She heard nothing for a few moments, then she heard the sounds of someone moving around unlocking the door before it swung open.

Quinn stood before her, wearing light pajama pants and a tank top, hair messy and blearily blinking sleep out of her eyes. Rachel's eyes instinctively raked over Quinn's form and her cheeks heated up as she noticed the decidedly feminine curves that Quinn's habitual outfits usually covered up.

"Rachel?" Quinn's voice was raspy with sleep and it sent a jolt through Rachel, settling somewhere low in her belly. She swallowed hard as Quinn cleared her throat before speaking again. "What are you doing here? Is everything okay?"

Her questions seemed to snap Rachel out of her trance. "I should be the one asking you that. No one has been able to reach you the past few days. Everyone is starting to get worried, so I figured I'd come by and check up on you." She glanced again at Quinn's attire. "I'm sorry, did I wake you up? I didn't think you'd still be in bed, it's almost noon."

Quinn blinked again. "Oh, um, no, it's fine. Come in." She shuffled to the side and opened the door a bit wider, letting Rachel walk in. She brushed against Rachel while closing the door and Rachel's heart flipped as she caught the scent of sleep and warmth and Quinn. The taller girl grabbed an oversized sweatshirt off the back of an armchair and slipped it over her head before talking again and Rachel ignored the small pang of disappointment she felt. "I guess I should have warned someone, I'm sorry. I guess I'm just not used to people worrying about me anymore." Quinn ran a hand through her messy hair with an apologetic smile. "I've been contacted by someone to help solve a robbery case. It's a private affair, so I'm not allowed to give more details. I ended up not needing to go on site, the reports my client sent me were very complete and included photographical evidence and detailed profiles of..." she trailed off as she noticed Rachel raising an eyebrow. "Um, well, let's just say I tend to lose myself in my cases when they're interesting, and this one had a few points of interest. I've been staying here and going over the files for the past few days, and I didn't really notice the time go past. I'm afraid my sleep schedule has also been erratic because of it, so when I got the e-mail confirming the successful capture of the culprit yesterday evening, I barely took the time to shower before I crashed. I'm usually more of a morning person."

Rachel shot a glance in the direction of Quinn's small kitchen and saw an empty pizza box, empty Chinese and Thai take-out containers, and what looked like a brown paper bag from a local deli place. She raised an eyebrow again. "So... you've been cooped up in here since the last time we saw you, living off take-out and little sleep?"

Quinn blushed and ran a hand through her hair again. "Erm, well, yes. Basically."

Rachel laughed before speaking up. "The glamorous life of a detective. Come on, go get dressed, I'm taking you out to lunch. There's a fair trade, vegan friendly café that opened recently not too far from Breadstix."

* * *

They decided to go for a walk after lunch. Rachel nursed what was left of her soy chai latte in a recyclable carton cup while they strolled through the park, the sound of dogs barking and children laughing filling the lulls in their conversation.

"You didn't have to eat vegan just because I was there, you know." Said Rachel after taking the last sip of her drink. "But it's appreciated." She threw the empty cup in a recycling can as they walked past it.

Quinn smiled. "And just because I'm not vegan doesn't mean I can't enjoy a vegan meal now and then. Their vegan menu just happened to tickle my fancy today. Don't think you're special or anything." She poked Rachel in the ribs without breaking her stride.

Rachel snorted. "'Tickle your fancy?' _Really_?"

"Oh, shut up." Quinn answered with a laughing smile.

"And you know, that was a lot of 'vegan' in very few words. It starts to sound weird when you hear it so much. Vegan. _Vegan_. Veeeeeeegaaaaaaaan."

Quinn burst out laughing and Rachel didn't even try to bite back her satisfied smile. She was enjoying the sound of Quinn's laughter more and more every time they spent time together and found herself always trying to make the other girl laugh.

A frisbee landing at Quinn's feet interrupted their moment. Quinn leaned down to pick it up and looked around to locate its owner. A young girl, a few years younger than Rachel herself, jogged up to them, obviously intent on getting her toy back. Quinn handed it to her with a smile that the young girl returned as she took it. She opened her mouth, presumably to thank Quinn, when her eyes flitted to Rachel and she did a double take. Rachel groaned internally. _Here we go again_.

"You're Rachel Berry!"

Rachel forced a smile on her face. "Yeah. Are you a fan?"

"Yeah! I have all of your albums! You're the reason I met my best friend!"

Rachel blinked. "Really?"

"Yeah! I–" The young girl suddenly stopped and seemed to deflate before she continued, her tone subdued. "I used to get picked on at school. A lot. And I didn't really have any friends. So I used to just stay by myself with my iPod and listen to your songs about how you were bullied before you became a professional singer. It made me feel better." Rachel was vaguely aware that Quinn was standing next to her, hands in her pockets and eyes trained on Rachel's face, but she couldn't stop watching the young girl telling her story. "Then one day at recess, Julia heard your music coming from my earbuds. She told me she was a part of your fan club and she had heard that you were going to do a duet with Jesse St-James for a movie's soundtrack, and we started talking. And now we're best friends, thanks to you!"

Rachel's smile was genuine this time. "This is an amazing story. Thank you for telling me." She cleared her throat. "Hey, do you want me to sign your frisbee?"

The young girl's entire face lit up. "That would be awesome!" She suddenly looked crestfallen. "Oh, but I don't have a pen or anything."

"Here," came a quiet voice from behind Rachel. "Use this." Quinn took a sharpie out of her pocket and handed it to her. Rachel shot her a grateful smile and made a mental note to ask her later why she was carrying this in her pocket before taking the young girl's frisbee.

"What's your name, sweetie?"

"Daphne." She was practically vibrating with excitement as Rachel wrote on her plastic toy.

_To Daphne. Thank you for reminding me why I do what I do. _

_xoxo, Rachel Berry_

She returned the frisbee to its owner with a smile, and after many excited "thank you!" Daphne ran back to her friends to show them her brand new autograph. Rachel turned to Quinn, who was watching her with an unreadable expression on her face. "What?"

Quinn slowly shook her head. "That was really nice. What you did for that girl."

Rachel smiled a little and linked her arm with Quinn's as they resumed their walk, privately reveling in the light blush that stole over the other girl's cheeks. "I think she did something for me, actually." She saw Quinn shoot her a quizzical look and extrapolated. "I've been... struggling with my life lately. I love singing, I love _performing_, feeling a crowd's eyes on me, knowing that they enjoy what I do, I love having people acknowledge my talent. But... there's the paparazzi. There's my publicists forcing me to only show parts of myself to the public, telling me what I can and can't be, telling me _who_ to be. I had... I had forgotten about this. About the fans, about how I touch their lives. About how I can make a difference."

She looked up and saw Quinn watching her with a soft smile on her lips. There was something in her eyes that she couldn't identify that made Rachel's breath catch in her throat. "You're kind of amazing."

Rachel blushed and shook her head. "Not really. But thank you for saying so."

Quinn only hummed as a response and they kept walking in a comfortable silence. They ended up sitting in the grass near a small pond in a secluded corner of the park, a small cluster of trees mostly hiding them from view.

After a few moments, Quinn leaned back on her hands and closed her eyes, tilting her head up towards the sky. Rachel took this opportunity to study her face. Quinn's features were sharp and delicate, her skin looked smooth and she had a content look on her face. Once again, Rachel felt baffled that she had managed to pass off as a young man for so long. With the shadows of the clouds playing on her face, Quinn looked absolutely _gorgeous_, and Rachel felt something expand in her chest as she felt things fall into place.

"Quinn?"

Quinn lazily opened one eye to look at her, a small smile on her lips. "Hmm?"

Rachel's mouth was dry. "Can I... can I do something?"

Quinn blinked and looked at her with both eyes, tilting her head in Rachel's direction. "Uh... sure?"

Rachel rose up on her knees and put her hands on Quinn's shoulders, looking down at her and watching Quinn's eyebrows shoot up. She leaned down slowly, taking in the slight widening of Quinn's eyes, and delicately kissed her. For a few seconds, Quinn was still and Rachel thought she might have made a big mistake, but then Quinn's hands came up to rest on her waist and she started slowly kissing her back.

She tasted like black coffee and banana cake.

Rachel moved her hand to Quinn's neck and sighed into the other girl's mouth, feeling goosebumps rise on Quinn's skin under Rachel's fingertips. She pulled back when air became a necessity, taking slow, deep breaths to try to calm her racing heart. The effort proved futile when she opened her eyes and saw Quinn watching her with dark, half-lidded eyes. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, her lips were parted and looked dark and wet and Rachel was convinced her own heartbeat was going fast enough to break the speed of sound.

A slow smile spread over Rachel's face and she reached up to tug the blue hat from Quinn's head, perching it sideways on top of her own head. With a delighted giggle, she leaned back down to capture Quinn's lips again.

Her publicists would just have to deal.


End file.
